The mentality of calligraphy creation can be roughly divided into two types: casual and deliberate. These two different attitudes are actually influenced by different expectations, implied readers, purposes, occasions, text content and other complex information. Moreover, with the conscious development of calligraphy art, the polarization of creative mentality is more serious and subject to the influence of these complex factors. In different stages of conscious development of calligraphy, these restrictive factors play different roles.
Aesthetic expectation
The expectation here refers to the author’s aesthetic expectation before creation. If the author has a higher expectation of this creation, the greater the degree of intention in creation. The assertions of “hasty cursive writing”, “meaning before writing” and “ready for writing” in ancient book theory all reflect the pre planning in creation. This pre arrangement may be a specific form layout or an abstract feeling (the perfection of breath, style and artistic conception), but it is that the calligrapher expects the aesthetic effect of the work before writing, so it has preconceived ready-made nature.
Song MiFu’s escape from summer calligraphy 30.9 × 16 “Princeton University Museum of Art
If the expectation of a calligrapher is very high, it is inevitable that he will fall into writing repeated contents again and again, modify the regrets and shortcomings of the last time, and constantly strive for perfection. This spirit of persistent pursuit is lamentable, but if you are too persistent in your creation, you will lose yourself and fall into a pattern of reincarnation, and your inner sensitivity and passion will gradually disappear. On the contrary, if the calligrapher does not set the expected goal in writing in advance, he will not have too much pressure and concerns, but his creative mentality will be relaxed and free, and his emotion is real and distinctive in artistic expression.
The absence of a goal does not mean that there is no pursuit, nor is it a blind creation, but a process in which the goal is gradually clear and developed in the creation. Because calligraphy creation belongs to an important part of aesthetic activities, this is also the generation process of “image”. The “aesthetic image is not an established and materialized existence, but is generated in the process of aesthetic activities.” This is especially true in the creation of cursive books. In the rapid movement, we should put the calligrapher’s emotional experience and rational perception into the pen at one time, so as to realize the blending and symbiosis between people and books.
Song Zhao Jirun Mid Autumn Festival post 35 × 44.5cm collected by Beijing Palace Museum
Dong Qichang once put forward an important calligraphy aesthetic proposition “Sheng”. He explained this concept with Zhao Mengfu as the opposite. “Words need to be cooked before they are born, and paintings need to be cooked outside.” “I seem to be able to write directly to Zhao Wenmin. I have little ears. But if my son is mature, it’s not as good as I have the spirit of Xiurun.” The Russian formalist school has a famous view: “Defamiliarization”. All arts such as literature have the obligation to make the object strange, increase the difficulty of acceptance, prolong the duration of experience, and then update and activate our old feelings and experience through formal skills and other means. Although this theory has many disadvantages, it helps us to speculate the deep significance of Dong Qichang’s concept of “life”. We can speculate as follows: Dong Qichang’s “life” is actually a calligrapher who makes a book by intuition in the state of unconscious creation. After creation, he compares it with the two reference systems from his own perspective (one is his most sought artistic ideal at ordinary times, and the other is the classic system under calligraphy). The “Defamiliarization” is the deviation degree of the two reference systems, or it may be the accidental realization of the artistic ideal in writing, To achieve Su Shi’s creation of “no intention to be good but good ears”.
Five Dynasties Yang Ning cursive script immortal living method Volume 27 × 21.2cm Beijing Palace Museum Collection
Creative motivation
The purpose and occasion of a calligrapher’s creation affect or even determine his creation expectation to some extent, and then affect his creation mentality. Calligraphers have many creative motives, which will change and adjust constantly according to time, place and people. We can generally be divided into two kinds of creative motivation: one is the realistic utilitarian motivation, the other is the non utilitarian and non interested creative motivation, which regards the writing activity as a pen and ink game, or the way and way for the author to vent his emotions. I think the latter is the most ideal creative state for the calligrapher himself. He experiences and ponders the blending process of “man” and “book”, which is actually the best interpretation of “inter heaven and man”. It is in this writing state that the calligrapher can temporarily remove the burden and mask of reality, put aside the secular constraints, and realize spiritual freedom. In this image world, he can “leave the world alone”, be free and carefree, and return to the spiritual home of mankind.
Tang huaisu bitter bamboo shoot calligraphy 25.1 × 12cm Shanghai Museum Collection
When calligraphers create for the purpose of realistic utilitarian nature, they often consider many practical problems, which will involve “implied readers”. For example, ancient bureaucratic calligraphers need to choose a grand and formal style of calligraphy and express it with a dignified and elegant style of calligraphy when writing memorials to the emperor or his boss; Write to your subordinates, relatives or friends, and choose a relatively free, relaxed and lively style and style of writing; In order to participate in a large calligraphy competition or hold an exhibition, modern calligraphers work hard and painstakingly. Their “implied readers” include experts, judges, the public and other groups. Both ancient and modern calligraphers have creative motives with utilitarian and non utilitarian nature.
For calligraphers, the calligraphy creation with utilitarian nature has the constraints of specific occasions and “implied author”. The external constraints will inevitably affect and even determine the calligrapher’s internal creation expectations. The blending and symbiotic relationship between people and calligraphy is no longer the fulcrum of creation, but gradually moves towards the division between people and books. This phenomenon is the inevitable result of the conscious development of calligraphy. Non utilitarian calligraphy creation is regarded by calligraphers as implied readers, so this creative mentality is the most relaxed, and it is also the moment when there is no need to modify and cover themselves in writing. Writing is creation. This process is the best time for the integration of people and books. Their most real personality and strongest emotions can be seen at a glance and can be expressed incisively and vividly. All the masterpieces in history were completed under this creative mentality and other conditions. Three of the “Five Combinations” of the best creative conditions mentioned in sun Guoting’s Book Manual are related to this: “God is happy to be idle”, “feeling benefits and favoritism to know”, “occasional desire for books”.
Wu Kuan’s letter to Ou was collected by Tang Yin’s Qingzha in Shanghai Museum